Sunday, April 10, 2011

EKB Capsule News...Kentucky...4-11-'11

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. The Big Sandy Area Child Advocacy Center, also known as Judi's Place, held its fourth annual run/walk Saturday to raise funds for the house which provides many free services to physically and sexually abused children. Those services include counseling, medical exams, and prevention education. This year there were more than 200 participants. Judi's Place Executive Director Laura Kretzer says the event raised more than $6,500 for Judi's Place.

Texas Governor Rick Perry, who chairs the Republican Governors Association, told some 500 Kentucky Republicans at the annual dinner in Louisville Saturday night that 2011 "might possibly be one of the most important elections you will ever be engaged in." Perry says Kentucky's gubernatorial election could send a strong message to the rest of the country that voters remain opposed to Washington's over-regulation, over-spending and over-taxation. Kentucky is one of four states choosing governors this year. The others are Louisiana, Mississippi and West Virginia. State Senate President David Williams, Louisville businessman Phil Moffett and Jefferson County Clerk Bobbie Holsclaw are seeking the Republican nomination in Kentucky's May 17th primary to run against Democratic Governor Steve Beshear, who is running unopposed for his party's nomination. Perry called on the Kentucky GOP to get behind the eventual nominee.

The Laurel County Sheriff's Department is investigating after a neighbor discovered the body of 84 year old Kenneth V. Keney outside his home on Keney Lane, one mile west of London, around 5:15 P.M. Saturday evening. An autopsy will be performed on Keney to determine the cause of death.

Seventy-seven year old Edward Edwards, the Louisville, Kentucky con man who pled guilty to five murders in Wisconsin and Ohio, died Friday night of natural causes at the Corrections Medical Center in Columbus. Edwards was sentenced to death after recently admitting to the 1996 murder of his foster son Dannie Boy Edwards. Edwards also pled guilty to killing 21 year old Bill Lavaco and 18 year old Judith Straub in 1977. He admitted to killing 19 year old sweethearts Tim Hack and Kelly Drew, who disappeared from a Wisconsin wedding reception in 1980.

Court records show the wife of Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture Richie Farmer, a Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, has filed for divorce. Rebecca Farmer filed for divorce April 5th in Franklin Circuit Court. Richie Farmer said in a statement: "My wife and I are working through some issues in our marriage. For her sake and for the sake of our children, we will have no further comment on this matter." The petition did not give a reason for the divorce action, and Rebecca Farmer declined to comment. Farmer is running on a ticket with State Senate President David Williams, who is seeking the GOP nomination for governor in a May 17h party primary.

A miner has found a fossil from a shark jawbone deep in a central Kentucky mine that is now on display at the University of Kentucky. The fossil was found in Webster County in February, where 25 year old Jay Wright was working to bolt a roof 700 feet underground. The 300-million-year-old black jawbone is believed to be from a shark from the Edestus genus that once swam the seas over what is now Kentucky. Wright said in an interview Friday, his first thought was "Gosh, what is this thing?" Jerry Weisenfluh, associate director of the Kentucky Geological Survey in Lexington, said a fossil this large is rare. It's now on display in the lobby of UK's Mines and Minerals building.

Kentucky's Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer has declined to participate in furloughs that most state workers are taking this fiscal year. Most state workers are taking six unpaid furlough days this year with more expected next year. However, elected officials are prohibited from changing their salaries while in office. Governor Steve Beshear and other elected officials are voluntarily participating by writing personal checks for a day's pay to the state government or donating the money to a charity. But Bill Clary, a spokesman for Farmer, says the commissioner doesn't agree with furloughs and is not participating. Farmer is running for lieutenant governor in the Republican primary in May on a ticket with Kentucky Senate President David Williams.

The Kentucky State Police and other departments in Kentucky are embracing social media as a tool in criminal investigations. State police officials say websites like Facebook and Twitter are becoming increasingly useful as a way to seek information, tips and evidence in investigations. State police started a Facebook page about three years ago, and it now has more than 30,000 followers. Earlier this year state police published on Facebook photos of the rings found with an unidentified woman whose body was found in 2001 along Interstate 65 in Simpson County. One commenter on the website figured out what company made the ring. Police are still pursuing her identity, but now with new clues.

The Speed Art Museum on the Belknap campus of the University of Louisville revealed plans for a $79 million project to renovate and expand to attract more visitors. The museum unveiled the plans during an event on Friday evening for museum advocates and potential donors. The museum also announced two anonymous donors have pledged $10 million if the museum can match the offer from community donations. The plans include a new building that will connect with the original museum building, which opened in 1928. The construction will be carried out in three phases with the first phase to be started this spring. Museum director Charles Venable said, with the expansion, they hope to double the museum's attendance, which is about 100,000 annually.